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Wheat Production
Management
Pest Management
Grain Storage
Alfalfa
Ag Programs/Resources/Updates
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Several scientists at the Panhandle Research and Extension Center recently addressed this problem. We believe that the yellowing of the wheat is due primarily to leaf rust, caused by Puccinia recondita. Fortunately, this is not expected to have a major impact on the wheat crop, as the first severe freeze should kill the pathogen. Even though we expect little impact from this disease, we do not understand potential interactions with other factors that we also observed in various fields including low nitrogen fertility, eye spot, wheat streak mosaic, root and crown rot, or aphid infestations. Fungicides can be used to control rust, but we feel that it is not worth the investment to spray fields at this time. Fortunately, the extra moisture this fall in many wheat-growing areas will reduce further stress in crops, lessening the chances of mortality from winter-kill.
The appearance of rust in fall is very unusual for Nebraska wheat production, but can easily be explained by the cool damp weather over the last four to six weeks. The increased moisture and cooler temperatures combined with the lack of a hard freeze allowed unusually good vegetative wheat growth. This type of weather (60-75oF) coupled with free moisture or high humidity, is ideal for the development and spread of rust. There does not appear to be a relationship between disease incidence and the use of different wheat cultivars, but UNL is currently investigating the identification of the particular races of the rust pathogen causing disease in different fields throughout the state.
Robert M. Harveson
Plant Pathologist
Panhandle Research and Extension Center
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All these and many more factors are important to the selection process, but the heart of the decision should still be yield. Do field trials and grower experience indicate that the seed you’re considering will produce top yields in your field conditions? In the end, the vehicle with all the options is only as good as its performance and reliability.
In this article several UNL Extension specialists address some of the new options and what to consider when selecting seed.
Not surprisingly, Nebraska Farm Business Association data indicates that the average price of seed per year is increasing faster than the cost of other inputs, said Roger Elmore, Extension crops specialist. For example from 1991 to 2003, seed cost increased an average of $1.45 per acre per year while herbicide and insecticide costs decreased by an average of just 14 cents per acre per year, Elmore said. During the same period, fertilizer costs increased an average of $1.14 per acre per year.
A further look at the numbers indicates that much of the increase in seed costs occurred in the latter half of that period as GMO seed became more popular. With the increased popularity of these GMOs and the likelihood of farmers ordering stacked traits in the future, costs could easily reach $65-$70 an acre for seed, Elmore said.
“It’ll be easy to get a huge bill for seed if you aren’t selective about what you need and get,” he said. “You don’t want to buy things you don’t need, and it would be really easy to do that.”
Alex Martin, Extension weed specialist, agrees. This year the royalty fee for Roundup Ready soybeans is increasing $4.75 a bag to approximately $15.25 a bag. While seed and enhancements aren’t priced separately from seed, each enhancement adds a cost.
Following is a general schedule of royalty fees or costs per trait for various corn hybrids: $18 per bag for the Roundup Ready gene; $24 a bag for corn borer control, and $45 per bag for rootworm control. Stacking all three traits could cost $87 in fees per bag before you even include the actual price of the seed. (Note: These costs are estimates and can be affected by several factors, including the amount of seed being ordered.)
Extension specialists recommended that growers carefully consider their needs and their goals, balancing costs with expected benefits.
UNL extension specialists have developed a step-by-step guide for using data from the variety trials to systematically select hybrids best suited for a particular operation. Using yield as the first criteria, it helps the reader develop a pool of genetically diverse seed hybrids which are proven performers and would be expected to yield well in a given situation. See Using Corn Hybrid Yield Data to Improve Selection of Rapidly Changing Hybrids (G03-1521).
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In some cases, producers may consider seed treatments or enhanced seed as a type of insurance, said Bob Wright, Extension entomologist. The value of this decision depends on the cost and the likelihood of a problem.
For example, while wireworm problems aren’t common, wireworms can wipe out a field and a producer is left with no recourse. There isn’t any postemergence rescue treatment for wireworms. In some cases providing control in case a problem would develop may be well worth it.
Some seed treatments, such as Cruiser, Prescribe, and Poncho, offer a lower rate for early season soil insect control and a higher rate for corn rootworm control.
“These products often do a good job with low to moderate populations of rootworms. With heavy rootworm pressure, generally the seed treatments have not proven to be as good. High populations may still require a rescue treatment,” Wright said.(See the Oct. 8 CropWatch for results from this year’s UNL corn rootworm insecticide field trials.)
Know the marketability of the hybrid/variety before buying the seed and plan to segregate the grain, if necessary, depending on the end market.
“Grain from some areas is more readily channeled to one market or another,” noted Martin. “If you’re planning to truck it to your nearest elevator, make sure they will take it.” For a guide to the approval status of corn hybrids in Europe and Japan visit the National Corn Growers Association Biotechnology Web site at http://lepton.marz.com/ncga/search_hybrids/know_where.asp.
As part of its “Know Before you Grow” campaign, it recommends you know whether a specific hybrid is conventional, approved for European Union (EU) export or not yet approved for EU export. "Growers should read their grower agreements before planting and be fully aware of the requirements of those agreements. It is vital that hybrids awaiting EU approval are kept out of export and processing channels.”
For a list of elevators and the GMOs they’re accepting, visit the American Seed Trade Association Web site at http://asta.farmprogress.com/locator.htm
With transgenics, it’s also good to verify and not assume their spectrum of activity.
“Today’s products target a pest more specifically than traditional options. Not all Bts are alike and not all products provide the same coverage,” Wright said.
For example, Herculex 1 and YieldGard both provide good control of corn borer, but they cover different spectrums, Wright said. Herculex also provides control of black cutworm and western bean cutworm. Growers also should be watching for new traits which are currently under development or being field tested, Elmore said. Many Nebraska producers may be particularly interested in work on a “drought gene” which could be inserted into corn hybrids to provide more stability in poor production environments, especially drought conditions.
Each year a number of new hybrids and varieties are introduced on the market, necessitating an annual checkup to ensure that you’re employing the seed and seed technologies available to get the highest yields possible and the traits and pest management options best suited to your field environment. Even with newly available hybrids, several years of commercial and university trial ratings are usually available. UNL Extension specialists recommend testing new varieties or hybrids on a limited number of acres typical of your field conditions before switching a major percentage of your crop to a newer hybrid or variety.
Lisa Jasa
CropWatch Editor
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Taking SCN samples
Sample for SCN the same way you would take a topsoil sample for fertility recommendations. In fact, by taking a few extra soil cores when sampling a field, you can have enough soil to send in half for your fertilizer recommendations and the other half for SCN analysis.
Thoroughly mix the soil cores in a bucket. Fill a standard soil-sampling bag or box with the soil mix, store samples in a cool place (not in the sun), and ship, as soon as possible, to the University of Nebraska Plant & Pest Diagnostic Clinic; 448 Plant Sciences Hall; P.O. Box 830722; Lincoln, NE 68583-0722 or to a commercial diagnostic laboratory that does nematode analysis.
Include the following information with the sample:
Management
If SCN is detected in one of your fields, start rotating soybeans with a non-host crop such as corn, sorghum or small grains if it isn’t already in a rotation. In the years soybeans are planted, use an SCN-resistant variety. Recent tests show that resistant varieties have the same or very similar yield potential in non-infested fields and a significant yield advantage in infested fields. The good news is that, unlike other seeds containing genetic resistance to insects and/or herbicides, SCN-resistant soybeans cost no more than susceptible varieties.
Not only do you want to rotate soybean varieties with a non-host crop, you also want to rotate the source of resistance in the years you plant soybeans. The majority or resistant varieties currently available have a source or resistance known as PI88788. However, other sources of resistance are becoming more available including Peking (PI54840) and varieties with the Cyst-X® technology (which is a selection out of the Hartwig line of resistance).
The level of resistance will vary with varieties carrying the same source of resistance and there is no one best source of resistance. However, by rotating the source of resistance, we can reduce the potential for developing strains of SCN that can overcome the current lines of resistance. No variety or source of resistance is immune to SCN.
Run, don’t walk, from anyone claiming their soybeans are resistant to all SCN or can convert the race in a field to another race so it is more easily controlled.
Resources
For more information, see NebGuide G99-1383, Soybean Cyst Nematode Biology and Management, also available at your local Cooperative Extension office.
John Wilson
Extension Educator, based in Burt County
Planning for temporary grain storage
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Modifying existing farm buildings
If temporary/emergency grain storage is needed, putting a crop in a building is better than putting it out in the open. If bin space is full, pole barns and machine sheds can provide good grain storage if they’re prepared correctly and not overloaded. An excellent reference on modifying buildings is North Dakota State University publication AE-84, Temporary Grain Storage by Kenneth J. Hellevang.
Buildings used for grain storage should be in a well-drained site. Lay a sheet of 6-mil or heavier plastic on the floor to reduce the migration of moisture from the soil or through cracks in concrete floors into the grain. Ordinary machine sheds are not designed to withstand the pressures that are exerted on the sidewalls by piled grain. Avoid piling grain more than two feet deep against the side walls of machine sheds.
One good temporary grain storage solution is to construct a temporary “bin” inside an existing shed using steel grain bin rings placed on the concrete floor. These rings are self supporting and are made to withstand the stresses imparted by grain. A temporary “bin” 36 feet in diameter and 8 feet high will hold 6,514 bushels level full and if peaked to the maximum height 7.6 feet above the top ring (total height 15.6 feet high) would hold nearly 8,600 bushels.
Outside storage
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Since site preparation is so critical, it would be useful to know the size of pile necessary to store a given quantity of grain. Grain that is elevated using an auger and then dumped into a pile will come to rest in a cone-shaped pile and will come to rest at predictable angles, as shown in Table 1. Since volume is a function of the height and diameter of the cone-shaped pile, one can estimate the required diameter of a pile of grain necessary to hold a desired quantity (bushels) of grain provided the angle of repose is known for the particular type of grain.
The author has worked out a simple equation which can be used to predict the diameter of a conical pile of grain to hold any given quantity (bushels) of grain. Only two variables are necessary for the computation: the number of bushels and the base conversion factor (BF) from Table 1.
For more information on computing bushels of grain in various situations and configurations, including extracting cube roots, see Lancaster County Extension Factsheet 297-01, Emergency/Temporary Grain Storage - Unconstrained Piles of Grain, at http://lancaster.unl.edu/factsheets/FieldCrops/297.pdf.
Thomas Dorn
Extension Educator based in Lancaster County
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The symposium, sponsored by the Nebraska Agri-Business Association
and University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension, begins with 8:30 a.m. CST
registration. The symposium starts at 9 a.m. and concludes at 3 p.m. at the
Nebraska East Union on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's East Campus. It
also will be broadcast to the university's West Central Research and
Extension Center at North Platte.
Registration is $90 for Nebraska Agri-Business Association members
and Nebraska Certified Crop Advisors, and $140 for non-members, non-CCA
registrants and out-of-state participants. Those registering by Nov. 1 will receive a 5% discount.
Registration includes resource materials, refreshments and lunch.
Presenters include Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources
specialists and researchers. Topics include: grain for fuel, on-farm research, managing irrigation
systems for changing water supplies and policies in Nebraska, on-the-go
soil pH sensing, insecticide seed treatments, protecting surface water
quality with buffer strips, soybean aphids, wheat foliar diseases and
comparing Bt varieties.
A total of 4.5 Certified Crop Advisor continuing education units
can be applied for at each location with 0.5 in nutrient management, 1.0 in
soil and water management, 1.5 in crop management and 1.5 in pest
management. For more information or to register, contact the Nebraska
Agri-Business Association, 1335 H St., Suite 100, Lincoln, Neb. 68508-3784;
call (402) 476-1528; fax (402)-476-1259 or e-mail info@na-ba.com.
Registration for the free event begins at 8 a.m. The expo, which will run from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the main arena of Christensen Field, is designed for growers, crop consultants, agronomists, seed corn representatives, and others looking to improve corn production and marketing strategies.
Program topics will include: the genetic future of crop production; improving irrigation efficiency with subsurface drip technology; what to expect from Mother Nature in 2005; an agricultural perspective on our southern trade partners — Mexico and Central America; Western Bean Cutworm; an integrated biorefinery — the new Mead Ethanol plant — market impact; and updates from local and state corn commodity organizations.
For more information contact Dave Varner, Cooperative Extension educator based in Dodge County, at 402-727-2775 or dvarner1@unl.edu Exhibitor space is available.
The Nebraska Corn Expo is sponsored by NU Cooperative Extension, Colfax-Dodge County Corn Growers, Nebraska Corn Growers Association, Fremont Area Chamber Agricultural Business Council and area agribusinesses.
The annual one-day seminar, scheduled for Dec. 2 in Lincoln, features speakers from the UNL Department of Agronomy and Horticulture on current topics in teaching, research, and extension.
Jim Specht, agronomy and horticulture professor and soybean breeder, will address the high yield options and Jim Schepers, agronomy and horticulture professor and USDA research leader, will address relay intercropping.
Other seminar topics will include: Genetics via Distance Ed with Don Lee, Extension plant geneticist; Yellow Leaves in the Green Industry with Ellen Paparozzi, agronomy and horticulture professor; Water Crises in Nebraska with Gary Hergert, Extension soil quality specialist; Global Food Security with Kenneth Cassman, professor of agronomy and horticulture; and Are you Ready for Roundup Ready Turf? with Ryan Goss, Post-Doctoral Research Associate.
A panel discussion at 1 p.m. will address questions contributed by participants during the morning. There also will be a number of poster presentations on agricultural research topics.
Agronomy and Horticulture Highlights will begin at 8:15 Dec. 2 and conclude about 3 p.m. at the Cornhusker Hotel in Lincoln. A complimentary lunch will be included but reservations are required by November 22. For more information or to make a reservation, contact JoAnn Collins at the UNL Department of Agronomy and Horticulture at 402-472-2811.
We all know that dry, mature cows in good condition can get by on pretty low quality forage. In contrast, young stock need better feed to grow, and after heifers drop their first calf, they need very good quality feed to maintain growth, to milk well, and to rebreed.
One way to provide all your animals with enough protein, energy, and other nutrients is to feed expensive, purchased supplements. What a waste this can be, however, if you have in your own hay lot some stacks or bales that will take care of these nutrient needs. You probably already have hay that can supply nearly all the nutrient needs of your livestock without much supplement, but you’ve got to be able to identify and distribute this hay accordingly.
When harvest is over, don’t just move hay into winter storage. Store good hay separately from poorer hay and measure the feed value of your hay with a forage test to ensure you can provide the protein and energy needs of your animals. Also be sure to store each type of hay so you can get to it when needed.
Bruce Anderson
Limiting tillage can help maintain a firm seedbed, protect the soil from erosion, and conserve precious moisture, given the wheat residue has been evenly distributed.
If it rains enough soon after combining the wheat, you can kill most of these seedlings by spraying glyphosate or Gramoxone before planting alfalfa. But if rain waits until near alfalfa planting time, both alfalfa and volunteer wheat begin growing at the same time.
This is hard on new alfalfa. Wheat is very competitive, especially when it stools out and thickens. It can easily crowd out slower growing alfalfa seedlings, thinner the new alfalfa stand. It helps to remove the straw or at least have it chopped fine and distributed evenly across the field. Heavy residue can make it difficult for new seedlings.
Killing out the volunteer wheat is fairly easy to do using the herbicides Select or Poast, but it is best done in the fall so that alfalfa seedlings can be free of competition to establish well enough to survive winter. Plus, after wheat has gone through the winter it becomes more resistant to both Select and Poast. If you wait too long, you might get good tonnage at first cutting, but it will be mostly wheat with little alfalfa remaining.
Bruce AndersonSymposium features the latest in crop management research
A Nov. 10 research symposium will provide Nebraska
crop consultants, seed corn representatives, agronomists, producers and
others who make crop management decisions the latest information on crop
management research and technology.Nov. 23 Corn Expo tackles today’s production issues
The Nebraska Corn Expo November 23 in Fremont will provide producers and agribusiness representatives strategies to remain competitive in the complex corn industry.Agronomy program features soybean advances and relay intercropping
Soybean breeding and management for high yields and results from recent relay intercropping trials will be among the topics featured at this year’s Agronomy and Horticulture Highlights.Organize winter hay lots for efficient use
Once hay harvest is complete, manage your hay reservoir wisely by feeding selected stacks or bales according to your stock’s nutrient needs.
Extension Forage Specialist
Controlling volunteer wheat in new alfalfa
Drilling alfalfa into winter wheat stubble offers many benefits, but it also can lead to the growth of volunteer winter wheat seedlings.
Extension Forage Specialist
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Presenting the free seminars are Darrell Mark, Extension livestock economist, and Al Prosch, Pork Central director.
Locations
The seminars are sponsored by the Nebraska Cattlemen, Nebraska Pork Producers Association, Nebraska Farm Bureau, and the University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension.
The odor management workshops, tailored specifically for pork producers, are Nov. 11 in Norfolk and Nov. 12 in Beatrice.
The one-day, hands-on workshops will use planning tools to assist individual producers in assessing farm odor potential, identifying residences that are likely to be impacted by odors and determining science-based directional setback distances. It also will help in assessing applicable odor-control options and evaluating using and sizing a biofilter on a production building. In addition, the workshops will assist in comparing options and costs for covering a lagoon or manure storage and considering the benefits of different odor control technologies, especially in terms of reduced area impacted by farm odor.
The Norfolk workshop will be at the Lifelong Learning Center and the Beatrice workshop will be at the Gage County Extension office.
Workshops are from 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Lunch is provided. There is no registration fee, but advance registration is necessary by Nov. 5. To register, call Daphne Nebel at (402) 472-1646 or e-mail dnebel2@unl.edu.
For more information, contact Rick Stowell at (402) 472-3912 or Rick Koelsch at (420) 472-4051.
Workshops cosponsors are the Nebraska Pork Producers Association and the National Pork Board.
Crop and Weed Genetics, Internet distance education course, October 25 - December 11.
This workshop, taught by Agronomy Professor Don Lee, is for people who want to develop or update their understanding of plant genetics.
It covers the application of classical and molecular genetic principles to the explanation of variation observed in plant families and populations. Interpretation of information gathered from whole-plant trait observation and from molecular analysis. Relationships between crops and weeds. Examples from genetic studies on both crop and weed species are the basis of the course.
Why do corn hybrids from some companies tend to be more resistant to gray leaf spot or more susceptible to green snap? Is this weed becoming more of a problem for us to control with herbicides? Why do off-type kernels sometimes appear in a yellow or white cornfield? What percent of volunteer corn will have the hybrid’s herbicide resistance trait? What genetic changes were incorporated to produce this specialty crop? Crop and Weed Genetics is designed to help the agronomy professional understand the genetic basis for variation observed in the field among crop varieties or weed populations, and gain insights into the development of new traits in crop varieties. Email access required.
Cross-Pollinated Crop Breeding, distance education course, November 4 to December 11.
This class is taught via the Internet/videotape or CD-ROM by Agronomy Professor P. Stephen Baenziger. Learn the standard breeding methods and theories associated with population improvement of cross-pollinated crops or self-pollinated crops that are forced to cross-pollinate. Learn how to create populations, recurrent selection methods with and without progeny tests, and hybrid production practices. The common breeding methods used in improving cross-pollinated crops (e.g., corn, alfalfa, sunflowers) and the theoretical basis for cross-pollinated crop breeding will be discussed.
Pest Resistance Management, December 8-9, Lincoln
This two-day workshop will be held in Lincoln and taught by Alex Martin, Extension weeds specialist; Tom Hunt, Extension entomologist; Loren Giesler, Extension plant pathologist; and Blair Siegfried, Extension entomologist.
Further information on this workshop will be available in the next edition of CropWatch.
Understanding and Managing Spatial Variability in Soil, Feb. 2, Grand Island.
This one-day workshop will be taught by Richard Ferguson, Extension soil nutrient specialist, and cover why it’s important to understand spatial variability; what’s manageable; sources and scales of variability; spatial information resources -- public and self-generated; spatial tools -- GPS & GIS; and how to quantify variability.
(Attendance in Grand Island is recommended, however workshop will be taped and video delivered to students unable to travel to Grand Island.)
Workshop helps farmers plan odor management program
Two University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension odor management workshops will help pork producers further understand the off-farm impact of odor, alternatives for controlling odor and applicable alternatives for their farms.Distance ed classes offered on crop management issues
The Department of Agronomy and Horticulture is offering several distance education classes related to crop genetics and crop production. For more information on any of these classes, visit the department’s Distance Education Web site.
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Karen DeBoer, Extension Educator based in Cheyenne County: In the Southern Panhandle, we need some warm, dry days to pick up and combine proso millet. Most of it has been swathed and windrowed, but it’s been too wet to combine. Sugarbeet and dry bean harvest are progressing. In some places, wheat has been replanted due to the rain this fall.
David Baltensperger, Extension Alternative Crops Breeder, Panhandle Research and Extension Center, Scottsbluff: Proso millet harvest is finally wrapping up for the year. Nebraska dryland proso fields were heavily impacted by the lack of rain in late July through mid August. With late August moisture some fields headed, but did not produce enough growth to harvest easily, increasing harvest losses significantly. Some areas received late July rain and produced average yields, but few non-irrigated fields produced above average and many were below average to not harvested. On a brighter note, producers with limited irrigation produced excellent yields and a high quality crop this year.
USDA Nebraska Agricultural Statistics Service: For the week ending October 17, drier conditions allowed harvest to continue at a near normal pace for soybeans while corn and grain sorghum harvest lagged behind normal. In some areas, corn harvest has been slowed due to high grain moisture content and the backlog at drying facilities. Producer activities also included finishing fall wheat seeding and harvesting alfalfa.
Corn condition rated 2% very poor, 5% poor, 17% fair, 48% good, and 28% excellent, above last year and average. Irrigated fields rated 82% good and excellent while dryland fields rated 65% good to excellent. Harvest was 31% complete, a few days behind last year at 39% and a week and a half behind average at 50%.
Soybean harvest was 80% complete, near last year at 81% and average at 79%.
Sorghum condition rated 3% very poor, 9% poor, 42% fair, 38% good, and 8% excellent, above last year and average. Eighty-nine percent of the acreage was mature, behind last year at 97% and average at 96%. Harvest was 30% complete, a week behind last year at 45% and a week and a half behind average at 52%.
Dry bean harvest was 68% harvested, well behind last year at 97% and average at 96%. Proso millet harvest progressed to 69% complete, behind last year at 95%.
Wheat seeding moved ahead to 96% planted, behind last year and average at 98%. Eighty-five percent had emerged, behind last year at 88% and average at 87%.
Alfalfa conditions rated 14% very poor, 17% poor, 29% fair, 34% good, and 6% excellent, above last year and average. Fourth cutting activities were 89% harvested, behind last year at 96% and average at 94%.
Pasture and range condition rated 18% very poor, 26% poor, 31% fair, 24% good, and 1% excellent, above a year ago and average. Cattle were being moved to stalk fields as they became available.
Selling that special sauce: UNL’s Food Processing Center is offering a one-day seminar Jan. 21 for those interested in exploring the idea of starting a food manufacturing business. Pre-registration is required and space is limited. Registration deadline is Jan. 12. Contact Jill Gifford at (402)472-2819 or jgifford1@unl.edu for more info.
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